Garment closure



1965 H. MADNICK ETAL GARMENT CLOSURE Filed Dec.

INVENTOR United States Patent 3,218,652 GARMENT CLOSURE Herman Madnick,Framingham, and Ralph Mai-tone, Malden, Mass., assignors to the UnitedStates of America as represented by the Secretary of the Army Filed Dec.28, 1962, Ser. No. 248,850 1 Claim. (Cl. 2--270) (Granted under Title35, US. Code (1952), sec. 266) The invention described herein, ifpatented, may be manufactured and used, by or for the Government, forGovernmental purposes without the payment to us of any royalty thereon.

The invention relates to combination garments of the type wherein a bodyor nether garment or union garment has an auxiliary garment or garmentportion associated therewith in such a way that the auxiliary garmentmay be taken off or put on without disturbing the main garment. Examplesof such auxiliary garments are gloves for the hands, storm rubbers forthe feet, or hoods for the head and it is within the scope of theinvention to include connections between long and short limb-coveringportions or connections between body and nether garments.

Such combination garments are known but usually have the fault that theauxiliary garment is permanently connected in part to the main garmentand entirely disconnected therefrom otherwise. This arrangement leaves agap through which cold air, fluids, dust or radioactive materials mayreadily enter. Alternatively, the normally disconnected part of the twogarments is readily detachably secured together by separable fastenersof all types. These have the disadvantage of being expensive, ofbecoming damaged and lost, or of being hard to operate in darkness orwhile wearing gloves or mittens.

With the foregoing in view, it is an object of the invention to providean improved combination garment of the class described wherein thereadily detachable connection between the garment portions isinexpensive, is not readily susceptible of damage or loss and which canbe operated by untrained personnel in darkness or while wearing handcoverings.

A further object is to provide such an improved combination garmentwhich includes a novel readily detachable connection comprising aninterengagement of complementary garment parts.

A further object is to provide a novel readily detachable connectionbetween two tubular garment portions disposed in end-to-end relation.

A further object is to provide such a connection which includes twocomplementary interengaging portions of the two garment portions.

Other objects and advantages reside in the specific structure of theinvention, the structure of the several elements of the same,combinations and subcombinations of such elements with each other and/orthe garment portions involved, all of which will be readily apparent tothose skilled in the art upon reference to the attached drawing whichillustrates several species of the invention, in connection with thefollowing specification wherein the invention is described and claimed.

In the drawing:

FIGURE 1 is a fragmentary view of one side of a garment sleeve showing aglove connected thereto according to one species of the invention, thereadily detachable portions of the connection being disconnected;

FIGURE 2 is a like view but showing the readily detachable portion ofthe connection being connected;

FIGURE 3 is an enlarged longitudinal fragmentary sectional view takensubstantially on the plane of the line 3-3 of FIGURE 2;

3,218,652 Patented Nov. 23, 1965 ice FIGURE 4 is a fragmentary explodedsectional view showing a modification of the invention; and

FIGURES 5 and 6 are exploded fragmentary perspective views showing twofurther modifications of the invention.

Referring specifically to the drawing wherein like reference charactershave been used throughout the several views to designate like parts andreferring at first to the species of FIGURES 1 to 3, 10 designates agarment sleeve and 11 a glove. A portion of the free end edge =12 ofsaid sleeve, say one half, is permanently connected to a like portion 13of the glove 11 by any suitable means such as one or more lines ofstitching "14. The other free end edge port-ion of the one of the sleeveor glove, in this instance the sleeve 10, is formed with a fixed cuff 15which is fixed against unfolding by the lines of stitching 16 at theopposite ends thereof. The remaining free end edge portion of the othergarment, in this instance the glove :11, is provided with a tab orextension 17 which projects beyond the end edge 13 and includes areversely bent end flap 18 which is secured in reversely bent positionby any suitable means such as the line of stitching 19 whereby toprovide what might be called an open cuff because the opposite endsthereof are free. As best seen in FIGURES 1 and 3, the tab 17 is swungover the cuff 15 and the flap or open cuff 18 is tucked into such fixedcuff 15 to provide a continuous but readily detachable connectionbetween the cuffed portions of the garments 10 and 11. No separablefasteners are required and the connection may be readily made and brokenin darkness with gloved hands, a necessity in the instance of oneconnection at every operation. Also, the connection is one which tendsto prevent seepage of fluids through the connection as well as to bardust or like particles. When the glove 11 is disconnected, it may befolded up into the sleeve 10 to a non-use position in a well knownmanner.

The several species of FIGURES 4, 5 and 6 operate on the same principlebut relate to garments or garment portions which do not have a partialpermanent connection therebetween. Thus, in the species of FIGURE 4, atubular garment portion 20 has an outside cuff 21 formed therearound bystitching 22. Such cuff 21 is adapted to be interfitted with acomplementary inside cuff 23 or flap formed on the inside of theadjacent end of a tubular garment portion 24 by stitching 25. Theconnection may be accomplished by opening the cuff 23 then pulling thegarment portion 24 over the cuff 21 of the garment portion '20 andmanually ing the unfolded cuff 23 into the cuff 21.

In FIGURE 5, a tubular garment portion 30 has a complete outside cuff 31formed thereon. A second garment portion 32 has four segmental insidecuffs 33 or flaps secured thereto. These may be unfolded as in theFIGURE 4 species, pulled over the garment portion 30 and cuff 31 andthereafter tucked therein to complete the joint.

In the species of [FIGURE 6, a tubular garment portion 40 has twosubstantially semicylindrical fixed cuffs 41 secured thereto outwardlythereof. The mating garment portion 42 has two complementary cuffs orflaps 43 secured thereto inwardly thereof. As before, the cuffs or flaps43 may be unfolded, pulled over the cuffs 41 and tucked therein to forma readily detachable connection between the garment portions 40 and 42.

It is apparent from the foregoing that the invention may be used tocomplete a connection which is partially permanent as in FIGURES 1-3 ormay be used to form a complete connection which permits completeseparation of the garment portions connected thereby. Also, although,FIGURES l-3 disclose the connection as being utilized between a handcovering and a garment sleeve,

it is contemplated that it will be used to connect other garmentportions, such as head coverings to body garments, body garments tonether garments, upper sleeve or leg portions to lower sleeve or legportions, or body garments to foot or leg covers and the like.

Also, while there has been shown and described what are now thought tobe of the preferred species of the invention, it should be understoodthat the same is susceptible of still other forms and expressions.Consequently, the invention is not considered to be limited to theprecise structures shown and described hereinabove but only ashereinafter claimed.

We claim:

A composite garment including a limb covering portion and an extremitycovering portion, said portions having tubular inner end edges disposedin end-to-end relation, means permanently connecting opposite one-halfsections of said inner end edges together, the remaining onehalfsections of said inner end edges comprising normally free edges, thefree end edge of one of said half sections being folded back andstitched on opposite side edges to form an axially outwardly directedcontinuous cufi along the entire length of said half sections, the freeend edge of the other of said half sections having a downwardly directedtab terminating in an upwardly directed flexible continuous flapextending the entire length thereof complementary to said cuff andadapted to be tucked into the same to provide a readily detachableconnection between said free end edges along the entire length of each.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 694,532 3/1902Cox 2--139 1,092,047 3/1914 Hertz 2--270 1,139,293 5/1915 Joachim et al-2139 1,183,792 5/1916 Aron 2270 2,136,879 1 1/1938 Haber et al. 22702,226,066 12/1940 Moe 2270 2,274,510 2/ 1942 Wohl et al. 2270 2,323,1366/ 1943 Johanson 2270 2,885,682 5/1959 Koenig 21Z4 FOREIGN PATENTS403,944 1 1/ 1909 France.

16,626 9/ 1893 Great Britain.

JORDAN FRANKLIN, Primary Examiner.

DAVID J. WILLIA'MOWSKY, ROBERT V. SLOAN,

Examiners.

